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From the moment an intrigued Brian Wilson first heard the über-synched sounds of vocal quartet The Four Freshmen wafting out of his gramophone as a 1950s teenager, harmonies have played an integral part in popular music.
Wilson and his Beach Boys' cohorts took the ball and ran with it majestically back in the 1960s reaching their collective zenith on the wondrous Good Vibrations.
The Beatles’ ears would prick up this side of the Atlantic too and since countless artists have incorporated the collective singing method to various degrees of success over the past 50-odd years – arguably the greatest recent purveyors being folk kings Fleet Foxes.
So what of Dublin upstarts Little Green Cars who are carrying the vocal baton now then? After the tantalising introduction which was spring single, 'Harper Lee', the album it was spawned from has finally dropped and thankfully proves that dreamy predecessor with darker undertones was no false dawn.
Watch 'Harper Lee' by Little Green Cars below
The ominously-titled, 'My Love Took My Down The River To Silence Me', bursts out of the stereo surfing on the quintet’s melodic chanting with frontman Stevie Appleby and vocalist Faye O’Rourke meshing with both power and impact.
In the press they’ve been quick to ascertain they are more than just a folk band - there’s no doubt the earthy traditional Irish music influences are present, but they’ve fused them with more contemporary elements as heard on the yearning 'The Consequences Of Not Sleeping'.
Elsewhere, 'Big Red Dragon' and 'Red and Blue', showcase the different sides to their armoury perfectly, one joyously jaunty, the other sombre and thought-provoking.
Watch 'Big Red Dragon' by Little Green Cars below
The ponderous 'The Kitchen Floor' maybe a mid-set lull, but things are soon back on track once more on the epic 'The John Wayne' and tender 'Goodbye Blue Monday'.
Expect Little Green Cars to muscle in on the musical fast lane before 2013 is out.
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